Silence of the Lanta

Hannibal Lecter has been offered parole on the condition he restrict his diet to Hamilton Street bus riders. Once a month he will be permitted an Asian merchant; on thanksgiving he may have a preselected blogger. Mr. Lector will be micro-chipped and given a new Hamilton Street loft apartment. He will be monitored by the new surveillance cameras. Mayor Pawlowski and Armand Greco will provide more details at a press conference early next week at the new Lanta Terminal.
reprinted from October 20, 2007
UPDATE: Hannibal wasn't eating those Asians fast enough, they were forced off Hamilton Street by eminent domain in 2011.

Stacking the Deck

When Donny Cunningham appointed Ed Pawlowski to the Lehigh Valley Airport Authority, he stacked the deck against Queen City Airport. Pawlowski has advocated selling Queen City for development since before he was mayor. The fact that this city needs no more commercial or residential space is lost on him. South Mall, once home to three large department stores, now has one. The property has underperformed for decades. Needless to say, the last thing the school district needs is more housing and students. The distance between Queen City and Lehigh Valley Airport provides a safety margin between commercial planes and small aircraft. The Airport Authority is a case-study in poor decision making. They took land for runway expansion they never used, now owing the original owners ten times the price in penalty and interest. (LVIA is under court order to pay $26million) They expanded their departure terminal to a size they never needed. They constantly remodel the under used facility. They fired their director with no succession plans in place. Cunningham appointing Pawlowski, with a predetermined agenda, is the last person that board needed.
UPDATE: In an article today in The Morning Call, it states that the sale and development of Queen City could create "thousands of jobs." That is ridiculous.

NIZ, A Study in Favoritism

Bernie O'Hare has an excellent post on the irony of Pennsylvania tightening it's belt and instituting a new give=away program at the same time. He writes;

According to State Senator Pat Browne, dwindling state revenues make these cuts necessary. "We have been in a trough, a serious trough," he laments to a reporter. What the good Senator fails to point out, however, is that he dug the hole about which he now so sadly complains. He helped draft legislation that gives major tax breaks to well-heeled entrepreneurs, so that those on the brink, can continue to suffer.
All in the name of hockey.
Back in 2009, Browne and State Rep. Jennifer Mann,..(wrote and had passed)- the "Neighborhood Improvement Zone." To be fair, that program is available for any local government with a population between 106,000 and 107,000 in the 2000 census. It's certainly nobody's fault that the only local government fitting this bill just happens to be Allentown.
Aside from the outright grant, what's really repulsive about this is that taxes that should go to the state, to pay for things like schoolbooks and Medical Assistance, will instead be funding a J.B. Reilly development, helping him get richer....

What is also repulsive about this program is the secretiveness and selectivity with which it was implemented. Although it was known that the Arena Authority would be able to use the taxing vehicle for it's debt service, it's availability to private parties was not publicly disclosed. I attended a private meeting with Allentown's Community Development Director, Sarah Hailstone, and the merchants. During the course of the meeting, and a subsequent one, it was never disclosed that private investors could utilize the tax advantages of the NIZ legislation. The merchants also had a meeting with Pat Browne, who also did not disclose the secret. In addition to the earned income tax, it also includes the 6% Pennsylvania sales tax. Had the merchants been aware of this tax incentive, it would have greatly enhanced their relocation options. The merchants and public only gained knowledge of this provision upon the announcement of J.B. Reilly's projects. At that point the Administration claimed that any application would have to be approved by them (AEDC) to see if it forwards the Vision for center-city. Whose vision? A new Authority is now being formed, and will be in charge of the Vision. All I see is favoritism.

Arena Dooms Old Allentown

A resident of N. 8th Street expressed concern about traffic congestion at last night's arena meeting. She should be concerned, because the City has said that existing traffic patterns and existing parking can accommodate the arena. That's only true if the arena is going to be a failure, anything more successful will impact both traffic and parking. What that resident should really be concerned about is the Old Allentown Preservation Association; Once again those lapdogs ate their doggie biscuit, but this time it's poison. For decades those yuppies yearned for an adjoining quaint downtown, although they never sufficiently patronized such merchants that did remain. For years they supported City policies, and in return had a problem building occasionally removed at taxpayer expense. Welcome to the architectural wasteland coming your way. Welcome to a square block parking lot with a white elephant monstrosity sports palace. Welcome to the fruits of your complicity.

Lunch At Allen

Up to the mid 60's, students at Allen High could leave the building for lunch. Scattered in alley's around the the school, garages had been converted into lunch shops and hangouts. The Hutch was in the alley between 17th and West Streets, in the unit block between Hamilton and Linden. Suzy's was behind the Nurse's Dormitory, between Chew and Turner. Another was across Linden from the Annex. They all had the same basic decor, a few pinball machines, a few tables and a small lunch counter. Most of the business was during lunch period, and before and after school. It's my understanding that occasionally a kid or two would skip school and hangout all day. Today these garages, turned into luncheonettes, have long ago reverted back to garages. Most of the current residents of West Park probably don't even know about this commercial history right behind their houses. I missed photo day at Allen for my yearbook, but if anybody has a picture of the gang from the Hutch, I'd appreciate a copy.
reprinted from February 2010
UPDATE: Back in 60's we had a few hoods*, but no gangs. Today the schools require staggered starting and dismissal time, plus security guards and city police, to establish basic safety. If that's not enough, we superimpose those discipline issues with a mandate to improve standardized test scores. Imagine allowing students in today's world to roam the neighborhood for lunch.
* not a neighborhood, but a Fonzi type non-conformist

Backup to the Future

It's the year 2018 and Mayor Guridy has just received the long anticipated study from A&P Associates. Advice from Afflerbach and Pawlowski doesn't come cheap, $475,000, but as City Council President Michael Schlossberg said, "Sometimes it pays to invest in the best." Some of the recommendations to revive Hamilton Street are nothing less than brilliant. Bus transfer stops are to be placed back on Hamilton Street between 7th and 9th, creating foot traffic and enhancing a sense of security. Meter rates will be reduced, once again accepting quarters and other coins. The old Allentown Brew Pub, closed since the KOZ ended in 015, will be torn down to create a convenient pocket parking lot. A national search has begun for a new arena director, and Mayor Guridy promises that the real estate tax increase, necessary to finance the arena, will be temporary.

adapted from a previous post

Cannibal Valley

During the summer of 1952, Lehigh Valley Transit rode and pulled it's trolley stock over to Bethlehem Steel, to be chopped up and fed to the blast furnaces. The furnaces themselves ceased operation in 1995, and are now a visual backdrop for young artists, most of whom never saw those flames that lit up that skyline. Allentown will now salvage some architectural items documented on this blog, and begin tearing down it's shopping district, which was serviced by those trolleys. As young toothless athletes from Canada, entertain people from Catasauqua, on the ice maintained by a Philadelphia company, Allentown begins another chapter in it's history of cannibalism.

photo from August 1952, showing last run on St. John Street to Bethlehem Steel

The Fifth Estate

Among the best wishes I received yesterday, was a poison note from Future Attendee. The note was so hostile, the editorial board at molovinsky on allentown decided not to publish it. I suspect he was embarrassed about his misinformation about Family Dollar. I have over-ruled the board, because there's a lesson to be found here. Excerpts from Future's homily;

..you have a low level of intelligence... Oh to add once again. I know the majority of city council members outside of the Dias(sp) as well the Mayor. They all laugh at you. you are a mosquito that is easily forgotten about.... So as for your WPA issue. You can keep complaining about a project that was done in the 30's. No one cares that gives a damn. Allentown is making a movement forward not looking back from something that FDR did. Get your proprieties(sp) straight...

There has been some speculation by readers of this blog as to Future's connection to the Administration. Let us hope that it is between much less and none. A few years ago, The Morning Call decided to forgo editorials. Opinions expressed there are now Op-Ed pieces written by readers. Reporter-wise, their staff has been reduced by both the industry wide transition from print to electronic, and their parent company's bankruptcy proceedings.* Having turned into a one party town, there is no opposition in the City Council Chamber. Opposition and critical analysis of taxpayer funded policy now rests in alternative media, what I call here the Fifth Estate. If molovinsky on allentown can contribute to this new estate, my time is well spent.

* Morning Call reporters Scott Kraus and Matt Assad have been doing an excellent job providing information about the arena project.